Bikers take a stand against bullying

Bikers take a stand against bullying

A TULLIBODY man and his classmates have taken a stand against bullying as part of a college project.

The group of Forth Valley College students were tasked with organising an event to raise awareness and money for an organisation of their choice.

And Chris Green, a victim of bullying in the past, decided it was the ideal opportunity to support Bikes Against Bullies – a service set up by keen motorcyclist Chris Cooper which offers support to those who are being physically and verbally intimidated by others.

Chris, a business student at the college, told the Advertiser: "It's part of an enterprise activity that basically spurred from discussions of what we were going to do. I'm a biker myself so I'm into Bikes Against Bullies.

"I've been a victim of bullying...and it's something that needs addressed because a lot of kids are going through it just now.

"Social media has had a massive impact on their lives. It's so easy to bully somebody now so we need to deal with these things."

The group set up a stall in the Tesco car park in Alloa on Wednesday, November 22, with a raffle organised to raise funds and resources available for passersby.

Chris continued: "If you don't deal with it, it goes on through adult life. Fortunately I had support from my mum, who is a secondary school teacher and my gran's a childminder, so I had lots of help from family, but not everybody has that.

"A lot of people come from broken homes and don't have support from mum and dad so it's just one of those things that these guys [Bikes Against Bullies] can really help with."

Chris Cooper, the founder of Bikes Against Bullies, had travelled to Scotland from Cumbria to hold a workshop in Glasgow, educating youngsters on the importance of being kind, and stopped in at Alloa to show his support.

He said: "It's just amazing. We're only just over a year old and we rely on the motorcycle public in general for support.

"The fact that [Chris has] gone out of his way to do this on a cold, wet, damp day is just amazing. It's brilliant support.

"You have to deal with it multifaceted, really, from supporting the victims, which is our primary concern, to educating people - especially youngsters.

"One and a half million children are bullied every year right through the UK, 18 youngsters commit suicide, so it only takes one parent driving past, whose child's going through it, for them to get some advice and you've made a massive difference straightaway."

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